InterDigital Outlines Product Architecure for Evolving Handsets to Support Wideband TDD; Robust Technology Offers Highly Efficient, Low-Cost Solutions for 3G Voice and Data
PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 30, 2001--InterDigital Communications Corporation (Nasdaq: IDCC), a leading developer and enabler of advanced wireless technologies, today described the product architecture for enabling Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) Third Generation (3G) handsets with Wideband Time Division Duplex (WTDD) technology.
In a presentation delivered at the Mobile Silicon Conference in Paris, France, Michael McEntee, Senior Product Manager for InterDigital Communications, focused on the architecture and products that will enable handset manufacturers to evolve GSM/FDD handsets towards GSM/FDD/TDD handsets with reduced risks and cost.
"InterDigital's architecture allows WTDD to be added onto existing FDD/GSM handset designs," explained Mr. McEntee. "Our complete suite of products will allow equipment manufacturers to rapidly integrate WTDD into 3G handsets. Our hardware centric design approach provides for reduced power consumption, which, in turn, will greatly extend battery life in the handset. InterDigital is developing the technologies for WTDD baseband processing and RF circuitry required to support TDD bands and WTDD specific software protocol stacks."
The majority of 3G spectrum licenses awarded to operators worldwide have included a 5Mhz-unpaired band for WTDD operation. WTDD refers to the high chip rate standard (3.84 Maps) for TDD as specified by the UTRA TDD standard. WTDD, an integral component of the 3G UMTS standard, is ideally suited for high speed (up to 2Mbps) Internet access and file downloads in hot-spot and high traffic areas.
Carriers deploying WTDD in micro and pico cell environments as a complement to Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) can make efficient use of available bandwidth and meet the growing demands for data traffic as 3G networks are deployed. When coupled with FDD, WTDD technology delivers the complete 3G WCDMA solution.
"Operators deploying WTDD can efficiently provide peak data rates to their customers and thereby deliver a high quality of service. Many in the industry are projecting that, as new data applications and content are made available, asymmetric data traffic will increase substantially," Mr. McEntee noted. "In today's wire line environment, the data asymmetry is currently 8:1. Analysis conducted by InterDigital and other leading firms demonstrate that at this level, WTDD is 35% more spectrally efficient than FDD."
As the volume of data traffic over 3G networks increases, InterDigital sees applications for WTDD not only at capacity hot spots such as shopping malls and airports, but also for enterprise systems, such as intranets and extranets, and integrated services in Virtual Private Networks.
InterDigital believes that the topography of most offices makes WTDD technology an ideal solution for enterprise applications.
InterDigital's complete WTDD solution consists of the baseband modem, a software protocol stack and an RF reference design. It will be particularly effective in delivering advanced voice and data capability to smart phones, wireless personal digital assistants, laptop computers, and other innovative wireless terminals.
Mr. McEntee's presentation is available on InterDigital's website, www.interdigital.com.
InterDigital develops advanced wireless technologies and products that drive voice and data communications. The Company offers technology and product solutions for mainstream wireless applications that deliver cost and time-to-market advantages for its customers.
InterDigital has a strong portfolio of patented TDMA, GSM/GPRS and CDMA inventions, which it licenses worldwide. For more information, please visit InterDigital's web site: www.interdigital.com. InterDigital(R) is a trademark of the Company.
This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding InterDigital's current beliefs and expectations as to the effectiveness of WTDD technology in delivering complete, low cost 3G solutions; uniqueness and variety of WTDD deployment opportunities; efficiency of a WTDD solution in various applications; its focus on full system deployment solutions, quality and frequency of implementation; availability of the Company's WTDD technology through product, technology transfer and licensing. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties.
Actual outcomes could differ materially from those expressed in any such forward-looking statement due to a variety of factors in addition to those specifically identified above including but not limited to: the market relevance of our technologies, our inability to capture potential market opportunities, lack of multi-vendor support for a standardized technology, the effect of general economic uncertainty on the telecommunications market, changes in the 3G standard in a manner that adversely effects the applicability of our patents to the standard WCDMA technology development and productization, generally, limited or no deployment of TDD technology, the development of substitute technologies and competition from competing technologies, failure of the 3G market to materialize as expected. |
